Junction boxes and other devices used for telecommunications, cable television, power distribution, control systems and the like often require servicing by technicians to, for example, add new telephone or cable service lines, replace malfunctioning components, polish and splice optical fibers, or replace circuit breakers or spent fuses. The technician must often use a number of tools or handle numerous small parts when servicing a box, and many technicians find it convenient to bring a portable work table which they set up near the box to provide a ready surface upon which to place their tools and components while they work.
While the use of a work table may be convenient, carrying the table from one site to another, setting it up and breaking it down is not. Additionally, the junction box or other device to be serviced may be mounted high above the ground on a structure such as the side of a building, a utility pole, or a microwave or a radio transmission tower, where there is no convenient place to set up an extra table for use by the technician.
Clearly there is a need to provide a convenient work table for use by technicians servicing equipment which would be useable under all conditions no matter where the device to be serviced was located. Ideally the work table should require only a minimum of time and effort to set up and break down, and it furthermore should not comprise an extra piece of equipment which a technician must transport to and from a work site.
It is an object of the invention to provide a convenient work surface for use by a technician when servicing a device.
It is an object of the invention to provide a work table which pivots between a retracted position where the table is out of the way, and an extended position in which the table provides a work surface to hold small tools and components.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide a work table which is positioned to catch small parts or tools if they are dropped by the technician.